A Chance Encounter
by ZankokuNaTenshi3
Summary: Ashton and Precis go to a small town's winter carnival together, but just as Precis is beginning to figure out how she feels about Ashton, his childhood sweetheart turns up after many years. Do she and Ashton still feel the same way about each other?
1. Just Feeding the Dragons, I'm Sure

Author's Note: Yay, Star Ocean rules. I had this really great idea for a fanfic, but I started writing it in the middle. This is the beginning, but I don't have anything after it yet. There will be some Ashton/Precis romance later on, cuz they're just so adorable together ^_^. Yeah, anyway, I wrote this scene during the bus ride to a marching band competition. It's amazing what you can come up with when you're sugar-high and stuck on a bus for 3 hours with a whole bunch of crazy band people.  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own Star Ocean. If I did, the anime would be out in the US already.  
  
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"The doctor said that we made it just in time," Claude told his friends, who were gathered for dinner in the common room of the Weeping Hawk Inn.  
  
"So Rena-'nechan will be okay?" Precis asked him as Gyoro grabbed a biscuit off her plate. Claude nodded as Ashton scolded the dragon.  
  
"It's too bad poor Rena darling got sick like this all of a sudden," Celine said. "In her condition, she can't use her healing power on herself. And she was even the one who suggested that we come here for the winter carnival."  
  
Claude sat down in the one empty seat at the round table, between Leon and Ashton. "I feel like I should stay with her tonight and tomorrow, just in cast the doctor needs any help, or if Rena needs any comfort." Absently, he fended off Ururun's attempts to steal the piece of chicken Celine had served him. "The doctor said she'd recover in a day or two, but I can't help but worry...."  
  
Celine fed the blue dragon a scrap of her own chicken wing to keep the dragon from bothering Claude. "It's okay, we understand how you feel about Rena, Claude-darling." He blushed slightly, but kept his eyes on his plate.  
  
Ashton watched Claude as he finished off a hamburger. He could imagine how worried Claude must be about Rena. Ashton knew that he would feel the same way if anything were to happen to Precis. He glanced at Precis. Yes, he knew he'd worry day and night, even if Precis didn't care.  
  
Precis noticed Ashton watching her, and shifted nervously in her chair. It always bothered her when he did that. She wasn't sure why, but she definitely felt much safer around Claude. Trying to distract herself, she took the bowl of raisins from the center of the table and threw them to Ashton's dragons.  
  
Gyoro ate the first raisin after it landed on the table. The second bounced off Ashton's forehead before the red dragon ate it. Precis lobbed the third raisin a little harder, so it hit Ururun, catching the other dragon's attention. Ashton sighed and ducked as Precis tossed a whole handful of the morsels into the air.  
  
Welcoming the distraction from his worries, Claude smiled slightly and set a cracker on top of Ashton's head. The Crest swordsman rolled his eyes and sighed again as Ururun grabbed the cracker.  
  
Leon threw a strawberry that Gyoro caught out of the air. Celine tossed a chicken bone. Ururun and Gyoro each grabbed one end, and began to fight over the bone. Ashton sweatdropped as a handful of raisins rained down on his head.  
  
"Ne, Ashu, can't you catch too?" Celine asked as she threw a scrap of meat at him. Gyoro immediately bent down and devoured it.  
  
"I'm not hungry anymore..." Ashton muttered, failing to be amused by the flying food.  
  
Leon used his spoon to flip another strawberry at the two-headed dragon. Ururun blew a small cloud of frost at it, freezing it solid. Precis tossed a raisin over Ashton and the dragons to Claude, who caught it in his mouth. He grinned at Precis and placed another cracker on Ashton's head. Ururun nabbed the cracker as Gyoro pecked at Ashton, trying to get the raisins out of his hair.  
  
Ashton sat up, scrubbing his fingers in his hair. "Don't make them go for my head, guys! That hurts."  
  
Just as he raised his head, Leon sent another spoon-launched strawberry flying at Ashton. The berry hit Ashton, and everyone else laughed as Ururun ate it off the table. Celine flicked a clump of rice from her spoon, and little frustrated tears appeared in the corner of Ashton's eyes as Gyoro licked the rice off his face.  
  
"Cut it out!" he whined, trying to defend against the food his companions were throwing at him. Gyoro and Ururun snapped up the crackers that Claude fed them, showering crumbs onto Ashton's head and shoulders. Leon dipped a strawberry in whipped cream and spoon-catapulted it at Ashton. It skipped off the top of his head as he ducked, leaving whipped cream in his hair.  
  
Ashton stood up, putting his hands on the table. "This isn't funny! Stop it!" he yelled. Celine, laughing, pelted him with more chicken scraps that Ururun ate while Gyoro licked at the whipped cream. Ashton held his hands up as Leon flipped another strawberry. Precis threw the last of her raisins at him. Frustrated and embarrassed, Ashton kicked his chair over and stalked up to his room, trying to ignore the laughter as Leon hit him in the butt with one last strawberry.  
  
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Well, here you have it: the first chapter of my fanfic. I'm not totally happy with the title so it may change. Sorry about all the Ashton-bashing, all you fellow Ashton fans, but I thought that this was the best fic beginning I've ever written. Besides, I'm allowed to beat him up a little if he's my favorite character, right? Well, I have a lot more of this written, and hopefully I can get it up soon. Please review! 


	2. With Ashton?

Author's Note: Here's chapter two, already. I wrote all of this in school today ^____^. Don't ya just love it when you watch a movie in class? Please read and review, and don't tell my World History teacher ^_~.  
  
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"I feel so sorry for poor Claude-darling..." Celine told Precis as they sat in their room at the inn after dinner. "He's so worried about Rena that he's not even going to go to the carnival tomorrow."  
  
Precis frowned. "Darn, and Rena-'nechan and I were really looking forward to going together with Claude-san.... I wanted to go on a nice, romantic Ferris wheel ride with him...." Her eyes sparkled as she daydreamed.  
  
"You can always go with someone else. Like Leon," Celine suggested. "He's cute."  
  
The younger girl snapped out of her trance. "Go to the carnival with Leon!? He's such a brat!"  
  
"... Or you can go with Ashton. I'm sure he'd be really happy if you asked him to go on the Ferris wheel with you." The sorceress winked. "He's head-over-heels for you, you know."  
  
"Ashton...?"  
  
"Sure. He's a nice guy. He always seems pretty lonely too, even though he's got Gyoro and Ururun. I bet it would make his day if you offered to go with him."  
  
"I don't know him very well though..."  
  
"I've known him for a little longer. He's really nice. He'll probably do whatever you want him to. Ashton seems kind of gullible like that; if he thinks that it'll make you happy, he'll do it."  
  
"Really? I'd hate to take advantage of his kindness though..."  
  
Celine laughed a little. "You probably won't have to worry about that. If you're with him, that'll be enough to repay him."  
  
"Okay... then I guess I'll ask him...." Precis paused. "Wait, is he still mad at us?"  
  
"Hmmm... I don't know. Want me to talk to him?"  
  
"Sure, thanks Celine," Precis said as the Crest sorceress stood up and headed for the door. As she was walking towards it, someone knocked.  
  
"Leon-chan!" Celine said as she let the kitty boy into the room.  
  
"Ashton-'nichan won't let me in," he told her. "I knocked and knocked, but he wouldn't answer."  
  
"I hope he isn't too angry at us..." Celine muttered.  
  
"If he is, it's your fault!" Leon pointed at Precis. "You were the one throwing raisins at him."  
  
Precis jumped up. "What the heck, you little brat! /You/ were the first one to actually throw food at Ashton!" she yelled.  
  
"That was /Celine-san/, not me. And I'm not a brat."  
  
"Sure you are."  
  
"You're just jealous because I'm cuter than you and smarter than you and-"  
  
"How is bragging cute?"  
  
"I'm not bragging, I'm merely pointing out-"  
  
Celine stepped in. "Stop it, you two. If you can behave while I go talk to Ashton, I'll get him to let you in, Leon, and then you and Precis won't have to tolerate each other anymore."  
  
"No matter what happens, I am absolutely /not/ sleeping in the same room as /Precis/ tonight!" Leon yelled as Celine fled the room.  
  
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Celine knocked on the door to Ashton's room, glad to be away from Leon and Precis's battle.  
  
"Ashton, darling, open up please," she said sweetly when he didn't answer. Silence from within.  
  
She knocked again. "I have a barrel for you, dear."  
  
"When and where was it made?" he asked from inside.  
  
"Uh... Herlie... erm... twelve years ago, I think...." She hoped that answer was sufficient.  
  
"You're lying. All the woodcutters were on strike that year. Wood was hard to get, and it would have been used for ships, not barrels."  
  
Celine sweatdropped. "Oh, wait, it says 'Hilton'. Sorry, my mistake."  
  
"There was no barrel industry in Hilton back then. It only started up about five years ago."  
  
"Ashton, you are such a loser..." Celine muttered under her breath. Then, louder, she said, "Can't you just let me in?"  
  
"... Fine, it's open." He sounded far from happy, and maybe even slightly ill. Celine opened the door and stepped into the room.  
  
Ashton was lying on his side on one of the room's two beds, his back to Celine. Ururun and Gyoro peered at her eagerly, grumbling. Celine walked up to Ashton-tachi and stroked both the dragon's noses.  
  
"Sorry, I can't understand you two," she told them.  
  
"They're asking for more raisins," Ashton moaned. "Please, gods, Celine, don't give them any..."  
  
"Why not?"  
  
"They made me really sick...." He sat up slowly, arms folded across his stomach.  
  
"Oh... I'm sorry," Celine said as she sat on the bed beside him. "And we're all sorry about what happened at dinner. That was really immature, and we won't do it ever again."  
  
"I forgive you... I feel so gross I don't think I'd have the energy to be angry at you anyway."  
  
"Aww, poor Ashton-kun..." Celine hugged him gently. "I hope you feel better."  
  
"Celine...?" Ashton said, squirming a little. "Could you please let me go? I feel like I might hurl again..."  
  
The Crest sorceress let go of him and hopped off the bed as though Ashton had just turned into a bug. "So... are you going to let Leon in now?" she asked cautiously.  
  
"Oh... sure... just as long as you tell him to be quiet and generally leave me alone until I'm feeling better..." Ashton said, turning slightly green.  
  
"Okay. I hope you feel good enough to go to the carnival tomorrow," she said as she left the room.  
  
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Well, that's it for chapter two. About the whole thing with Celine and Ashton and the barrel, for those of you who have only played the game, I don't think that they explain Ashton's barrel obsession there. In the anime though, Ashton says that he's a barrel enthusiast, like it's some sort of hobby. So I figured that he'd be very (read: disturbingly) knowledgeable on the subject of barrels. And the thing with the raisins, my friend and I have wondered for a while whether or not Ashton and his dragons share a stomach. I decided for this fanfic that they do. I think the answer to this mystery of life may be explained in the little mini-comic on the back of manga 4, but alas, I don't know enough Japanese (yet). If anyone could translate the little comic thingie and send me a translation, I'd be very happy ^^. Anyway, sorry to rant on so long like that. I hope you liked chapter 2, and I'll try to get chapter 3 up soon. Marching band season is almost over, so after (I think) this week, I'll have a little more free time to spend on things I enjoy, like drawing, cross stitch, and, of course, writing anime fanfiction. ^_^ 


	3. Not a Date Honest

Author's Note: Sorry, this took a while to get out, didn't it ^^;; I had a lot of stuff for school that I had to make sure I finished. I'm sure you wouldn't want to read a story written by a girl who was failing English, now would you? But now that I'm done with all that junk and I'm on winter break, I can finally write a little more. Anyway, the Ferris wheel scene was actually the first part of this story that I wrote. Then I wrote a few other random scenes from throughout it, and now I just have to tie a couple of them together and write an ending. The first two parts of this chapter is the little 'in between' stuff. I don't like it, but don't listen to me.  
  
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Gyoro mumbled unhappily as Ashton walked through the carnival the next day. Though Ururun seemed to be enjoying himself as much as Ashton, it was far too cold for Gyoro to be able to get much pleasure from the sights and smells of the carnival.  
  
"Lucky you like the cold." the red dragon growled in his own draconic language to his companion.  
  
"Don't complain," Ururun replied. "This man seems to tend towards warmer climates, so this is the first time in a while I've been happy."  
  
Gyoro shivered and snuggled against Ashton's neck. The swordsman reached up and stroked his nose, but he was too busy talking to the Precis girl to listen to the red dragon's complaints.  
  
"It's too cold. I hate this. I want a raisin." Gyoro grumbled.  
  
"You're such a whiner. Just shut up and take the cold." Ururun stretched up as far as he could, basking in an icy breeze. "Aah, that feels good. you really are a wuss if you can't stand a little chill like this."  
  
"I am not!" Gyoro growled ominously. Ururun blew a small cloud of frost at his counterpart. Gyoro responded by biting him. Within seconds, a full-fledged fight had broken out.  
  
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"Gyaa!" Ashton yelped as the dragons fought over his head.  
  
Precis stepped away from Ashton as he tried to get the creatures under control. She greatly disliked the stares from all the people around them. That was something that always bothered her about Ashton. He always attracted so much attention with those dragons on his back. And when they fought..  
  
After a few minutes, however, Gyoro and Ururun had given up on their battle, and just rested their heads on Ashton's shoulders.  
  
"Sorry about them." Ashton muttered, sweatdropping.  
  
Precis continued walking in the direction they'd been heading before the distraction, not bothering to see if Ashton was following her. "It's. okay." she replied over her shoulder. She figured that he must be used to such problems, but it still bothered her to be with someone who had so many people gawking at him.  
  
"Precis-chan, where are we going?" the swordsman asked as he ran to catch up with her.  
  
She paused briefly until he was beside her, then started walking again, keeping her head down. "I don't know. I wanted to look around a little to see what was here."  
  
"There's a Ferris wheel," Ashton suggested.  
  
Precis became even more intent on studying the ground as she walked so Ashton wouldn't see her blush.  
  
". and lots of games, and a tent with music, and I hear there's going to be a big antiques raffle today too," he continued.  
  
Precis looked up at him. She wanted to go on the Ferris wheel with /someone/, but if she went with Ashton, he might get the wrong idea. He'd always seemed like a trustworthy person, but who knows what he might try if he was alone with her in a Ferris wheel car fifty feet off the ground.  
  
"Ne, Precis-chan?" Ashton waved a hand in front of her face, snapping her out of her worries. "What do you want to do?"  
  
"Um." Still, some part of her wanted her to be alone with Ashton. She felt kind of sorry for the unlucky Crest swordsman, and felt somewhat obligated to get to know him better, since he seemed to like her so much. "Will you go on the Ferris wheel with me?" The words tumbled suddenly out of her mouth. Unable to recover them, she smiled weakly and blushed.  
  
Ashton blushed ever so slightly himself as he grinned back at her. "Sure, I'd love to."  
  
Ururun muttered something to Gyoro that made the other dragon laugh. Ashton blushed furiously and told them both to be quiet. Precis sweatdropped.  
  
"At least in the Ferris wheel, we'll be alone," she said to herself. "No one to stare at weird old Ashton and his dragons."  
  
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Ashton nervously clutched at the railing of the car as the Ferris wheel began to move. Precis moved slightly so she was sitting across from him in the round car. Though this spot was the farthest she could get from Ashton, her knees were still pressed up against his. She shifted again, trying to suppress the vague apprehensive feeling that was welling up inside her. This movement caught Ashton's attention.  
  
"Have you ever been on one of these before?" he asked, smiling slightly. The Ferris wheel stopped to load more passengers, leaving Precis and Ashton about twenty feet off the ground. Precis was silent for a moment, and the only sound was the quiet roar of the rest of the carnival.  
  
"Once," she said finally. "But I was really little."  
  
He grabbed the railing as the wheel lurched into motion again, causing the car to sway. "This is my first time," he told her once the swaying had slowed. Gyoro and Ururun ventured to peek over the edge of the railing at the ground.  
  
The Ferris wheel stopped again, with Precis and Ashton nearly at the top. Precis twisted around and looked out across the carnival spread out across the field below them.  
  
Ashton scooted closer to Precis, causing the car to tilt. "I wonder if we could see Celine and Leon from here..." he said quietly, not noticing that, by moving, he'd unbalanced the car, causing Precis to slide slowly towards him.  
  
Precis found herself leaning up against Ashton when the Ferris wheel began to turn again, bringing them towards the ground. Gyoro rested his chin on her shoulder, inviting her to scratch his nose. She did so as she sat stiff as a board, shoulder to shoulder with Ashton. She was thankful that he was too busy looking around to notice that she was blushing.  
  
As their car reached the bottom of the wheel and began to ascend again, Ururun, jealous of the attention his counterpart was receiving, nibbled gently at Ashton's hair. He glanced at the blue dragon, then at Precis, and began to scratch Ururun under the chin. Precis could see that he was blushing slightly too. The gentle rock of their car seemed to no longer be bothering him.  
  
"You're all tense, Precis-chan," Ashton observed. "Is Gyoro bothering you?"  
  
"No, it's not Gyoro...." The dragon grumbled and nuzzled her hand.  
  
"Are you cold?"  
  
"Not really..."  
  
"What's wrong then? Are you worried about Rena?"  
  
"Yeah, I guess that's it," she lied, stroking the red dragon's nose and trying to ignore how close Ashton was.  
  
"I'm sure she'll be okay by tomorrow. Claude said her fever was going down this morning, remember?"  
  
Precis squirmed. "Maybe... after this we could buy her something."  
  
"That seems like a good idea." Ashton smiled and put his arm around her. The dragons sensed that Ashton wanted some privacy, and began to quarrel with each other to keep themselves occupied.  
  
"Ashton...?" Precis said quietly. "Could you... not touch me, please?"  
  
He moved his arm, looking slightly hurt. "Sorry..." he muttered. Slowly, he moved back to his original seat, balancing the Ferris wheel car again. Precis relaxed a little, though she could not exactly say that she was happy that he had moved.  
  
Ashton turned around so he could look out the other side of the car, the side facing away from the carnival and towards the town. He didn't seem to notice that Ururun and Gyoro were still fighting behind his back.  
  
As Precis watched him, turned halfway around and gazing at the town, she realized how lonely he looked. She wondered if he had any other friends besides those dragons and Claude-tachi. Though he said he'd been traveling alone before the dragons joined him, he didn't seem like the sort of person who liked being alone. No matter how many times she or one of the others had teased him, he was always quick to forgive them. It was like he needed to be around people. She began to feel a little guilty for having ignored him almost totally since she'd met him.  
  
"Perhaps if I'd gotten to know him," she thought, "I wouldn't feel so nervous about him looking at me all the time... I'm sure Celine is right, that he's a very nice person..." Still slightly nervous, she gently rested her hand on his knee.  
  
"I'm sorry, Ashton..." she said quietly.  
  
He turned to face her, and smiled. She could see the honesty of his feelings for her in his green eyes, and Precis wondered why she hadn't noticed it before. Feeling safer, she relaxed and moved a little closer to Ashton.  
  
"I'm sorry for all those times I ignored you and flirted with Claude. I'm just not sure what it feels like to be in love..."  
  
"I'm sorry if I ever made you worry, Precis-chan," Ashton replied, placing his hand on hers. "It's just that...." He blushed. "I- I've never met a girl as pretty or as spirited as you..."  
  
Precis beamed at him, her face reddening a little. "Thank you. No one's ever told me that I'm pretty before."  
  
Ashton stroked her cheek gently with one finger. "You are. You're very cute. And I've been so lonely... and unlucky too, especially with girls..."  
  
Precis blushed even more. "I- I've... never had a boyfriend before," she stammered. "And... I know you're at least as good a fighter as Claude- san is..." Ashton put his finger under her chin and gently tilted her head up so she was peering into his eyes. "And... I've never b- been kissed before..." she finished as he leaned towards her.  
  
"Neither have I..." he whispered, "But I've always wondered what it would be like..."  
  
Just as he was about to kiss her, the Ferris wheel stopped with a slight lurch, causing Ashton to fall off his seat and onto Precis. Upon raising his head, he realized that they were at the bottom, and that the ride was over. He got up off of Precis and helped her to her feet, smiling weakly as the dragons laughed at him.  
  
"Yeah, go Ashton!" he heard Celine call as he and Precis got off the Ferris wheel. Precis, who was holding his hand, blushed deep red and moved closer to Ashton, staring at the toes of her shoes. Celine, with Leon at her side, came to meet them. Leon laughed.  
  
"Did you and Ashton-'niichan have fun?" the kitty-boy teased.  
  
"Yes, we did." Precis replied matter-of-factly. "And did you and Celine have fun too? Did she have fun listening to you talk about how smart you are?"  
  
Leon flushed an angry red. "I didn't do that!" he yelled. He and Precis proceeded to argue. Celine walked over to Ashton and patted his shoulder.  
  
"Poor Ashton-kun." She hugged him tightly. "You can always go out with me if Precis is too busy fighting with Leon!"  
  
Ashton squirmed, trying to detach Celine from his arm. "Stop it!" he whimpered. Celine continued to snuggle up against him. The Crest sorceress was wearing her usual revealing clothing, though a luxuriously soft white fur mantle had replaced her transparent cape. Ashton couldn't help but stare at her. "Can't you go... hug Leon or something and leave me and Precis-chan alone?" Ashton offered.  
  
"Hug Leon?"  
  
"What about me?" Leon asked, turning to peer at Celine. Precis immediately went back over to Ashton.  
  
"Oh, but he's too young," Celine said, pressing herself up against Ashton, causing him to blush and Precis to get angry. "I need a /real/ man"  
  
"Celine! Cut it out!" Ashton whined.  
  
"Celine-san, stop kidding around and leave him alone!" Precis tried to pry her off the poor Crest swordsman.  
  
Leon pouted. "I can be a real man..." he said, then set about to prove it. Ears turning red under their velvety brown fur, the boy genius stepped up to Celine and put his arms around her waist. She let go of Ashton, who fell over backwards, landing on his butt on the ground.  
  
"Celine, I want you to go on the Ferris wheel with me," Leon said, sounding frightened. After a moment, he added "please" as an afterthought. Celine, clearly shocked, said nothing. Precis attempted to conceal a giggle behind her hand, as Ashton stood up, rubbing his bottom.  
  
"L-Leon-chan?" The Crest mage said after a few moments. The kitty-boy let go of her, and she turned around to face him, bending over. Leon's eyes went wide as he stared at her breasts. Celine stood up straight, and smiled down at Leon. "Sure, we can go on a little date if you want," she told him, though she was thinking "Oh, great, he's starting to grow up..."  
  
Precis, unable to keep it down, burst out laughing. "Shut up, Precis!" Leon snapped at her, blushing.  
  
"Ne, Precis-chan, let's go look for something to buy Rena," Ashton suggested, trying to keep her and Leon from starting another fight.  
  
"Yeah, it'd probably be best if we left Celine-san and Leon alone for a while," Precis replied, sticking her tongue out at Leon.  
  
"There's a tent over there full of antiques being raffled off," Ashton said, pointing, as he and Precis walked away from Leon and Celine. "I'm sure we could find something there."  
  
Precis nodded, cautiously taking Ashton's hand as they headed towards the tent full of antiques.  
  
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More Author Ranting: There's a little more. I have the next chapter mostly written. I hope to get it up before I have to go back to school, but please don't hate me if I can't ^^;;. Hope you liked this chapter. In the next chapter: my theories about Ashton's past. 


	4. How Can He Be Dead!

Author's Note: here's the next chapter. Tara's an original character; I hope you like her. Um. I don't really have anything to rant about at the moment ^^;; so enjoy!  
  
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Tara wandered through the antiques tent, looking at all the raffle prizes. Many of the items weren't too interesting, but there were enough rare things to make buying a ticket or two worth it. Brushing a lock of her fiery red hair out of her face, she paused to examine an old bottle.  
  
"Oh! What a nifty bottle!" exclaimed a girl who literally hopped over to stand beside Tara. She was wearing mostly pink, and her brown hair was pulled back into a ponytail.  
  
Tara nodded to her, smiling. "I collect bottles. I wouldn't mind winning that one."  
  
"You collect bottles?" The girl peered up at Tara. "That's really cool. Do you have a lot?"  
  
"Not really. I travel often, so I can only carry so many with me."  
  
"I have a friend who likes barrels. I'm sure he'd like to buy some too, but we don't let him because of all the traveling we do."  
  
"Really? I used to know someone like that too..."  
  
"Used to?" the girl sounded concerned. "What happened? If you don't mind my asking."  
  
"Oh, we were really good friends when we were little. Both our families traveled a lot, so we didn't really get to know other children our age." Tara smiled fondly, remembering the unlucky boy who had been her first crush. Then she sighed and continued. "I got accepted into magic school in Mars though. Before I had to go, he and I went on a little hike through the forest, and. encountered some trouble. He kind of. went missing."  
  
"Oh, I'm sorry. If you don't want to talk about it, that's fine." the girl said after a moment.  
  
Tara glanced at her, forcing herself to smile. "I suppose I have to get over his death eventually.... He's been dead for thirteen years now."  
  
The girl put a hand to her mouth. "Oh... I'm sorry..."  
  
"Don't worry about it," Tara told her. "Like I said, it's been a long time. I need to get over him."  
  
The girl was silent for a few moments, so Tara figured she could go buy a ticket without being rude to her. As she started to walk away, the girl called. "Make sure you don't forget his name though. I bet he'd be mad if you forgot."  
  
Tara turned and smiled at her. "How could I forget someone with a name like Ashton Anchors?"  
  
As she turned and walked to the ticket counter, she could only wonder why the girl's face had gone pale.  
  
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Precis ran over to Ashton as he stepped away from the counter where the raffle tickets were being sold. She was debating whether or not to tell him about the red-haired woman she'd met who'd said that he had died when he was seven.  
  
"Ah, Precis-chan! Do they have lots of interesting prizes?" he asked.  
  
Precis was caught off guard by the simple question. "Uh.... Yeah, lots of neat stuff... I'm sure Rena will like whatever we win."  
  
"/If/ we win," Ashton added. "An old friend of mine once told me that I'd never find a four-leaf clover because they die when I come close."  
  
Precis laughed slightly. "You're right, maybe we should have put my name on the tickets. You're just radiating unluckiness."  
  
Ashton smiled, sweatdropping. "Well, we've got the tickets. Want to go get something to eat now?"  
  
"Yeah! I saw a booth selling crepes near the entrance. Can we go there?"  
  
"Fine with me. I'll buy you a chocolate one," Ashton said as they started to leave the tent. Gyoro and Ururun squawked at him. "And I'll get something for you two after I buy something for Precis-chan," he told the dragons.  
  
Precis held Ashton's hand as they made their way through the crowds to the crepe stand. She realized that she really liked the Crest swordsman, and wondered what had ever made her mistrustful of him. She was glad Celine-san had talked her into going to the carnival with Ashton. But she couldn't help being bothered by what the woman with the bright red hair had said. "Maybe she was talking about a different Ashton..." she thought.  
  
Precis and Ashton made it to the crepe stand a few minutes later, and went to stand at the back of the line. Ashton smiled down at Precis. "After we eat, we can go play some games if you want."  
  
"That'll be fun," Precis replied, grinning back at him. "Thanks so much for everything, Ashton."  
  
"No trouble," he said, blushing a little. He leaned down and whispered in her ear, "and I promise I'll give you that kiss eventually. Some time when Celine and Leon won't bother us about it."  
  
Precis blushed and squirmed a little. She liked Ashton a lot, but the idea of kissing him still made her nervous. And what the red-haired woman had said was bothering her too.... She decided to ask Ashton about it once they'd sat down somewhere to eat.  
  
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More Author Ranting: Sorry that chapter was kind of short. I wanted to get it posted quickly. I'll try to get the next one up soon, but winter break is almost over T-T and I don't know how much time I'll have to write once school starts up again. 


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